Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans all I own is Shadow. I also do not own anything about LOTR or any of Tolkien's works, such as the Silmarillion, or the Hobbit, or anything that has to do with Middle Earth.

Hey every one thank you for the reviews that you have already sent in and I hope to get more. Just so you are warned, this chapter contains references to Tolkien's books, mostly the Silmarillion. I will clarify what those are after I finish the chapter. This chapter begins about two months after Shadow left. Enjoy.

Why, why did he have to be stuck here! Sure Shadow was grateful for all of the effort the Azerathians had put into helping him prepare his suit and body to fight magical creatures and all of the knowledge about the true history of the world they were craming into his head. But they were so damn boring! Azar and Arella were the worst. He needed excitement and problems that needed fixing in his life. But these people lead the 'perfect' lives! They had already solved the problems their society had ages ago. They had no emotional turmoil, no physical disabilities, no pain. No wonder Raven didn't enjoy the emotional overloads that she felt from her normal teenage friends, she thought that everyone was supposed to be calm, balanced, and frikkin emotionless! Shadow was dying here! He needed emotional turmoil in others so that he could ignore his own to help them. Here he was with them telling him to face his emotions and meat them head on, he didn't do that! He needed to help others to distract himself from him well-hidden feelings for Raven, needed distractions from the turmoil his mind becomes when he thinks, but these people had no problems and were telling him to remove his own.

They had to be robots, that was it, Beast Boy would agree with him on that. Wait a second, did he just think like Garfield? Now Shadow was really mad at himself for the real reason he was mad, he missed the companionship he felt while around the Titans. Here he was dependant on others, something he had sworn to never allow himself to do again. This had caught him off guard, he wasn't supposed to depend on others, but he had always assumed that that meant not going to others for advice or relying on others to make yourself feel better. But he had become dependant on three teenagers just needing him. He had become dependant on them to distract him from the emotional train wreck that he lived with inside his mind. Just being there for them soothed him like a drug or something. He had become addicted to being someone else's support pillar. He was pathetic. Oh well, he had to go to his stupid history lesson with Arella today. At least it was one about the first age of Middle Earth with all of the wars and monster slayings that he enjoyed learning about. Azar found it amusing but Arella didn't. Maybe afterwards he would go and ask Azar's opinion about his addiction… yes… that was the word for what he had an addiction to helping his friends to disguise his own inner turmoil. Well He had better get moving, he was going to learn about the Narn I Hin Hurin, Translated: The Story of the Children of Hurin. It included the slaying of Glaurung, the father of Dragons.

Shadow, surprisingly dressed as a citizen of Azerath(His X suit was being upgraded with magical and technological advances by the amazing scientists of Azar) raced towards the large building in the center of the city. It was a museum and learning center as well as the home of Azar, Arella, and at one time Raven.

As he entered the room he had been told to go to the previous day for the history lessons he saw what had to be the most wicked looking sword ever made sitting in a glass case. In fact there were hundreds of artifacts in this one. He was about thirty minutes early because he was eager to learn about the Tale of Turin Turumbar, a man that many of the older, more learned Azarathian monks had compared him to. Apparently he was a man cursed to do great deeds but always live under an impending curse and doom. He slowly read the plaques that described each artifact's history. There was the Dragon Helm of Dor'lomin, The clothing worn by Turin Turumbar when he was the Mormegil, the Black Sword. But what caught Shadow's attention after a few minutes was the sword that had given him the name. There sitting in a place of honor because of its historic value was Gurthang, the Iron of death. It was this sword that all dragon's hated yet feared, for it was the blade that had at long last taken the life of the first dragon, Glaurung.

As he was admiring the artifacts, Arella came and stood next to him. "I see you have taken a liking to the sword of the man you are compared to by so many." She said this with the hopes that she had finally caught him off guard. It had become the goal of every person on Azerath to try and sneak up on him.

"Yes I have, I can see why it is held in a place of honor here though. On Earth it would have been placed there because it is an amazingly crafted weapon, but here it is in a place of honor because of what it did, it proved that the evil of dragons could be killed as it was the first to do so." Shadow didn't even flinch when he heard her speak. Yes I have heard about the supposed similarities between us. That's why I came so early, I'm interested to learn about a possible kindred soul.

So his lesson went on that day, He learned about all of the hardships and heartbreaks Turin endured and couldn't help but agree with the comparisons between him and the Mormegil.

Back on Earth, the Titans had just endured one of their most trying times as a team yet. Robin had had some kind of chemical inhaled into his system, causing him to 'see' the Slade that was supposed to be dead. The trauma from the event had nearly killed him. Only a surprising decision on Raven's part and Robin's own deductive reasoning had saved his life. The aftereffects of that night would still be felt for years after, but at the moment the Titans were just glad that it was over. Three of the Titans hadn't yet realized what was bothering them so much. None of their normal activities were giving them the pleasure and enjoyment they used to. Beast Boy wasn't enjoying his gamestation competitions with Cyborg as much as he had a few months ago. It was very confusing to the poor shape-shifter, man he wished Shadow was here to explain what this lonely feeling was. He thought it must have something to do with Terra having turned to stone almost six months before. When Shadow returned from whatever he was doing he would have to ask for his advice on what this incomplete feeling was.

Robin on the other hand knew exactly what was bothering him. He had felt this exact feeling when Shadow had left him and Gotham behind before eventually reentering the Boy Wonder's life. Robin had no idea why it was so much worse this time, he had a sinking feeling that Raven might be broadcasting her loneliness without him there through the bond that she had made on that night he had been haunted by his lack of fulfillment when it came to Slade. He had a feeling that that night would make it life very difficult for the two teens. 'So this is what Shadow endures with three people, Raven only being one of his. How does he deal with three other peoples problems when he has so many of his own. I don't think that even Raven can truly compare to his. She at least had people to help her learn how to deal with it. Shadow's techniques can cause insanity, but he won't listen to reason when it comes to what goes on in his head.' Robin was having trouble focusing on his training now. He was having problems when it came to the relation ship he wanted with Star. He had just realized after the latest Slade incident that she was just to naïve for him. She would never even try to understand what made him, him. She would just try to change how he thought and worked to suit her slightly unrealistic view of the world. No they just weren't right for each other, but how was he gonna tell her that if she asked about them one day? He was just gonna go to the gym and workout, maybe he could clear his head then.

Raven was in her room reading what she considered to be a very good book. It was about a young wizard named Malchior. She was reading to get her mind off of the emotions that had been plaguing her for the past few months. She couldn't understand what the emotions were no matter how hard she tried to figure them out. So she gave up on identifying them and decided to just wait until Shadow came back to tell her what the most annoying one was. She knew that some were her feelings of self worth, but the biggest problem was the one that felt very similar to loneliness but she couldn't see why she felt lonely, she was surrounded by people. Anyway, she decided to distract herself by reading her newest book. Luckily she was able to get so engrossed in the memoirs of the wizard. Just as she was getting to the part where the wizard was about to either defeat the dragon Roreck or die at his hands when the alarm went off. Rolling her eyes she headed down to the T car to go off and fight a giant heart, such a pathetic villain. Heading back to the tower she immediately immersed herself inside the story again. With a few interruptions of course.

Shadow sensed a theme in his studies for the past week, they all involved dragons! And it didn't help that he was receiving way too many happy vibes from Raven and the other two, it didn't make any sense, they went from depressed and gloomy to being happy and perky. And that all happened within a few days, had Terra come back or something? Well anyway his lesson today involved the defeat of the dragon Malchior by a young wizard named Roreck. The pictures Azar used to depict him made him seem way too much the pretty boy, but then again a lot of wizards were around that time frame. Maybe they used their magic like a plastic surgery like thing. Well apparently he had been unable to defeat the dragon with his magical abilities so he sealed him in a book. That was anticlimactic. Just then, while he was looking at a painting depicting the hero while holding his book, his vision blurred and he saw things at a fast forward pace, he saw Raven holding that same book and looking at an image of Roreck inside of it, talking to her! And he saw the eyes calling themselves Malchior? Then he saw Raven releasing him and unleashing the great evil that was the dragon, a shot of flames heading straight towards an unconscious Raven and the other Titans, quickly devouring them.

He sat up in a jerky motion and saw Azar standing over him with a worried expression on her face. "What happened? What did you see?" No one knew about his bonds that he had created, or even that he knew Raven and that was why he wanted to learn how to battle magical creatures and people.

He quickly related his vision to Azar, forgetting for a minute that he was trying to hide his friendship with Raven from the people of Azerath. "So you saw the young girl I consider my granddaughter, releasing the very dragon we are talking about today from his prison. And you never thought to tell me about how she was doing or that you even knew her when you came here." The last sentence he relized his mistake and that she would probably not even consider teaching him the rest. "But even more mysterious than that is how you made these bonds with her and two of her teammates. Yes, how could a normal human make these without knowledge or experience as to how? You may be able to use the knowledge I am teaching you after all. And how do you think that I can teach you to defeat the evil that is Trigon when I myself have failed in that respect and no one knows how. But now you must follow this premonition and save your friends. I will allow you to borrow any of the weapons that have been used to fight dragons in the past if you promise that you will come back and finish your training. Do I have your word on that?"

There was no way that Shadow wasn't going, with or without her permission, but having it made him feel much better about the decision he had just made in his mind. "You have my word. And I will require my suit finished or not. I leave in an hour." With that he started to head towards the exit to his room, but he had a fleeting suspicion that the reason for all of the dragon slaying lessons meant that Azar had known about Raven being in trouble before this. "Oh, and I'm taking Gurthang." With that he headed to get his suit back and retrieve the sword from the case it was housed in, it didn't deserve to sit in a case, it was made for war.

Even sooner than he had hoped he was ready to leave. He had easily been able to retrieve his suit and belongings, the only problem he had was getting some senile old man to let him grab the sword, thought he was a security guard or something. "Well Shade, ready for another dimension jump?" He didn't even wait for the bike to answer as he created another portal with the xinothium he still had in his suit, luckily he had been able to install a more efficient xinothium generator. The technology possessed by the people of Azar was beyond imagination. He and Cy would have a lot of fun comparing tech when he got back, it was the perfect excuse to create a bonding with the team's other 'big brother'. He jumped into Shadewing and Rocketed towards the X shaped portal. He only hoped he wasn't too late.

Raven was shattered, Malchior had tricked her betrayed her, broken her heart, and now he was about to break her. She reached out with her powers yanking the wizard Roreck's spell-book to try and imprison the dragon again, but just as it was about to reach her had the dragon's jaws closed around it, followed by a gulping sound. Raven knew the end was near as the dragon's grip began to tighten. For some reason though, all she could think about was how disappointed she was that she never got to say good-bye to Shadow.

"Did I make you cry? I used you, and now I'm going to crush your body and devour it ending your pathetic life." Malchior was laughing at her now, in his strange hissing voice. She couldn't believe she had ever let a monster like him get such a special place in her heart. Just as she was about to give in to the inevitable oblivion that would end her life she heard something she had never dared to dream would come to her rescue, not a night in shining armor, but something mush better.

"Sorry to break up your breakfast, but she's not on the menu." All of a sudden a black clad figure jumped towards the claw crushing Raven slashing a X shaped blade across the armored scales of the dark dragon, but easily slashing through them as if they were paper. Shadow yanked Raven out of the dragon's grip before he could react to the gash. Once he had Raven safely in the hands of Robin and the other Titans Shadow turned to face what would be his first test, the first in many tests to see if he was what Azar suspected, but he had no idea that she was watching him to see what he would do.

"Well you must be the 'great' Shadow Raven told me about. Tell me if she couldn't beat me what makes you think that you, an ordinary human who relies on science to help him fight, can?" The great worm was obviously amused that a boy thought he would be able to fight him, let alone win. The other Titans were watching mesmerized that Shadow could even stand that close to the dragon without being affected by the heat of its breath.

Shadow calmly stood his ground as the dragon tried an intimidation trick to get him to cower in fear. "Maybe the fact that I now have in my possession the bane of your first forefather." Then stunning the young teens watching the display shadow drew Gurthang from out of his belt. The edges glowed with a pale fire when the blade sensed that it had been drawn in battle to once again shed blood. I believe that there really is no other blade that can match it in history and craftsmanship, forged by the Dark Elf in the Elder days and the very thorn that shed the lifeblood of the first dragon." Raven was surprised at how well he knew the ancient history that was long forgotten here on Earth, but she wanted to know how he had gotten the blade, it was supposedly lost after Turin had committed suicide with it long ages before(she had never seen all of the artifacts in Azar's temple).

"Yes I can sense that it truly is the blade of Turumbar, Master of Doom. But only those of Turumbar's lineage can actually wield it. Surely one as learned as you will know that that line failed with him." The dragon had a hint of nervousness in his voice that blade was the most feared thing among the kindred of the dragons. Even Ancalagon the Black, his sire, had feared it.

"We will see about the strength issue when I send it into your black heart. You are a powerful dragon, but a weak one compared to the one this blade killed in ages past." With that Shadow teleported to try and catch the dragon off guard, but Malchior was a much faster dragon than most and was able to dodge away from the blade but it still bit into his skin causing a much worse word than a glancing blow like that should have. The blade seemed to drink the dragon's blood as none could be seen on the blade after causing the gash. Malchior then took flight to try and escape the cursed blade but shadow kept teleporting above him to try and force him back to the ground. The dragon became desperate and tried to roast the insolent warrior alive by breathing his flames onto the young man when he landed, and because of the flames the suit couldn't teleport. After the dragon had set the south side of the tower's roof ablaze he stopped certain that Shadow wouldn't survive the inferno, but when the burning stopped Shadow could be seen standing in the same spot he had been when the fire had hit him. The flames around him completely went out and he didn't have a scratch! Robin was the most confused, those were magical flames and the suit wasn't able to take them. But he quickly turned his attention back to the scene unfolding in front of him as if it were out of a fantasy movie. The dragon panicked, but because of the loss of blood from the blade's previous attempt to end his life, his reactions weren't fast enough to dodge Shadow's strike and the blade easily sliced through the flesh and bone piercing Malchior's heart. Gurthang seemed to drink the dragon's blood dry, because not a drop stained the tower's roof. When the dragon's body disappeared in a flash of black flames, Shadow turned back to the team and collapsed from the exhaustion.

Shadow woke up in a dark room that he had never seen before. It had black walls with almost nothing on them. Except Gurthang hanging on pegs on one wall just above the doorway. Looking around himself he saw that it was sparsely furnished only the mattress that he was laying on. The Titans must have put him in here until he woke up. After all the Red X suit had been programmed to only come off if he told it to and no medical equipment would stay hooked up to him if he had it on.

Getting up he grabbed Gurthang off of its pegs and strapped it to his belt. Wlaking down the halls he deduced that it must be late at night or early in the morning, because everything looked familiar and he had only been in the tower at night when it was dark, never in the day when everything looks familiar. He walked into the main room hoping to leave a message with one of the Titans that he had to leave and would be back in a few months. What he found when he walked in was something that surprised even him.

The Titans were standing in the middle of the room, almost in a formation, with apprehensive looks on their faces. "What's this about?" shadow removed the distortion to make himself less intimidating. He was confused at the feelings he was receiving from BB, Robin, and Raven. They seemed terrified yet hopeful about his reaction to whatever they were about to ask him. What they did ask him was something that he had secretly wanted but never dared to hope for.

"H-hey bro, um… the team was uh… wondering if y-you maybe might consider… man this is hard… um… joining the Titans?" Robin was thinking he had just reached the point of no return. Either his brother would do the completely unexpected and say yes, or he left their lives forever and never came back, there would be no middle compromise or choice, it was one or the other. That's just how Shadow thought, now they just hoped their hunch on him wanting to be a Titan was right.

"W-what did you say?" Shadow stuttered, Beast Boy gained hope, Shadow never stuttered! Shadow was taken aback by this, why would they want him on the team?

"Dude, we want you on the team! You have no idea how lonely me, Rob, And Rae were without you here! I even became bored with kicking Cyborg's butt on the gamestation!" Beast Boy was in an absolute rant now and continued long after everyone had stopped listening as he went into the details about the fake matches he supposedly won.

"What he means to say is, well, we missed you and want you to be a permanent part of our lives." For some reason Raven was blushing as she said this. She had just recently, while hoping he wouldn't die, realized what she felt about Shadow, but luckily for her no one noticed her blush because at that instant Beast Boy began groveling at Shadow's feet in an attempt to convince him to stay. Picking BB up off the ground and standing him up Shadow surveyed the room. They really wanted him on the team and it wasn't a cruel joke like he had at first expected.

"I think I will." Gasps floated around the room. "But I will have to go back to the dimension I was in after a month or so to complete my training there. Don't even ask what my training is because I was forbidden to talk about it. But yes, I will become a Titan."

Beast Boy began running around the room balling because he had heard what he expected to hear, Shadow refusing but the Cyborg grabbed him and told him what Shadow had actually said and Beast Boy still ran around the room but changed into hundreds of hyperactive animals twittering and chattering happily. Robin came up and actually hugged his brother something that hadn't happened in a good long time. Raven came up and just gave him a small one, which he enjoyed more than he would ever care to admit. Just as Starfire was about to do her whole do you want to be my friend thing, Shadow walked past her to ask Cyborg to drive him to the mall to grab a few things for his room. They left and spent the whole time grabbing stuff only Shadow would decorate a room with and talking about the newest in car and computer tech.

Soon the two 'big brothers' of the team spent at least two-three hours in the garage a day talking about their teammates and the problems and little things that only big brothers would notice about them. Of course, most of the time was also spent working on the T car and other Titan vehicles while all of their banter was going on. Then he made sure to spend time on the gamestation with BB and Cy, that was at least an hour of his day there. Another two hours was spent in the gym with his brother working on new fighting plans and attacks for the team to work on. At least three hours were spent meditating with Raven. Then whatever time was left over from those, eating, and sleeping were spent as his alone time, a much needed necessity for him.

After about a week Starfire was able to corner him in front of the other Titans in the main room. "Please, where are you from, what is your favorite color, and would you be my friend?" Starfire was ready to see why her other friends thought so much about Shadow, she wanted to find a connection with him like her teammates had.

"I'm from Earth, my favorite color is black, obviously, and no." With that, Shadow walked back to his room for his alone time.

"Please, why does friend Shadow not want to be my friend?" Starfire was obviously hurt. Was there something wrong with her looks?(A/N: Yes I am going to make her kina shallow in this one, cause she is in the show)

"Star you have to let him try to understand your personality and try and find common ground with you before you can expect him to want to be your friend. He has something in common with all of us and if he didn't he wouldn't be here right now." Robin knew that this wasn't the whole reason that Shadow didn't like Starfire at the moment but couldn't bring himself to tell her that he would never want to be anything more than an acquaintance to her just because of her personality.

"But why did he become friends with Cyborg without the knowing to get him?" Starfire was puzzled about this. Why would he want to be friends with a half robot but not a pretty girl like her? Every boy she had ever met wanted to be her friend.

"Star, you need to understand that Cyborg and Shadow have major interests when it comes to technology and that makes them have something in common. Besides, Shadow isn't your normal hormonally driven teenage boy, a pretty face isn't enough to make him want to be around you like the other boys on this planet." Raven surprised everyone by speaking, she knew exactly what Starfire wanted and she knew what was bugging the girl. Star was becoming enamored by the mysterious new addition to the team and like most girls was attracted to the bad boys. She would get over the crush once Shadow 'crushed' the crush.

Yes, the young Tameranian soon gave up on the crush after the next couple days and went back to swooning over Robin. But their happily ever after wasn't quite in sight yet, in fact it never will. Because now it was Cy's turn to obsess over a criminal and it would threaten to tear the Titans solidarity apart.

So, let me know what you think. All references to anything of Tolkien's I do not own and are found in the Silmarillion. I hope you like it. Please I want reviews. I will not update until I get at least three new ones. Thank you for reading.

Anduril out.